New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-07-25
lives and then, when the bottom of the sack
has been reached, the smash will come.
TESTS FOR THE GUNS.

TESTS FOR THE GUNS.
Secretary Whitney in his letter to Captain
Ramsey admits that the Navy Department is
without practical experience in the use OF
bigh-power guns. In view OF the ignorance
of mechanical engineering displayed by the
Ordnance Bureau, which is solely responsible
for the Atlanta's armament, this confession is
neither too frank nor too explicit The De-
partmcnt certainly needs great deal OF in
formation on the subject, and for the sake OF
educating tho officers and experts entrusted
by the Secretary with the responsible duty OF
arnning the ship with powerful battery the
tests cannot be too minute and exhaustive
But since the Department by the admission
Of ito chief is so inexperienced and knows so
little about the working of heavy guns, the
Investigating board needs to be cautioned
against rash and foolhardy experiments The
Secretary makes a fine display OF energy in
insisting upon having the ship taken to sea
for a general exercise of great guns' and
upon having "the guns and carriages thor
oughlv tested by using them az nearly as
possible in the manner and with the rapidly
which would be Necessary In ba tle.' IL IS
to be hoped however, that the Board In the
exercise of its discretion will not attempt 10
carry out its instructions until the guns arc
in condition to be fired In the open sea- With
the guns recoiling and damaging the ship as
they have done in GARDENERS Bay, 1T Is the
height of folly to talk about "battlc tests
- or n general exercise of great guns in the
opcn sea and in rough weather. Inc WASH
;noton correspondent of "The Herald who
is ON the most friendly terms with the De-
pa,tmcnt, gives this gloomy forecast OF INC
probable result of carrying out the SecietarYs
extraordinary instructions
In the meantime orders will DO issued to again put
the Atlanta I'm a soogong condition. When the DAY
Of her sea trial takes place and she pitches ana 'oss
as vessels do in q seaway, and her elsh'-nch guns
are trained and fired at an imaginary enemy, THO
fear is that docs not sink the ship the guns tncn
selves will recon ovsrboan into the ocean, Whero
there will at least sufficient hydraulic pressure 10
keep them In check FOREVER
II the Atlanta be sent to sea without radical
alterations in the present method OF plvoting
the guns, working the carriages and oyercom-
ing the recoil, the Secretary may pay high
price for the information which he is SO
anxious to obtain. Nothing can be clearer
than the fact that the guns are not In con-
dition TO be fred. A long cruise with re-
pca,ed efforts to use the battery Is not re-
ouired 10 prove this With the guns recolilng
as they did under half charge oil powder
during the target practice, an atiem"t TO use
the battery on tho h gh seas as II would De
cmuloved in battle at full charge would be
both hazardous and reckless. Bv all means
let the guns and their fittings be Adequately
tested but the lives of officers and crew and
the property of the United Stltes Govern
ment should not be inn erilled by the repct-
ton at sea OF tests which have already COM
nletelv demonstrated the dangerous condition
Of the battery as it now stands. First set
somo intelligent mechanical engineers at
work preparing the foundations OF the
guns and then lot the tsts fol-
low Has tho Secretary ever. heard OF
Board of Admiralty of the British Navy that
deliberately Bent out vessel in search OF a
storm or ordered out cruiser for brousidc
practice when her guns were kicking all over
the deck? The Board of Adm IA ty takes
carc Of the ships entrusted to Is charge. no
Secretary mistakes policy OF wanton rcc&-
lcssness for administrative energy.
The truth about the At1antas guns Is THIS ::
tho Ordnance Bureau did not know how TO
mount the battery and fasten the guns To the
deck II displayed its ignorance ana incom-
p,;encc from the outset. For twelve months
its "experts- were tinkcring with those guns
and making bunders which any experienced
mechanical eng nccr would have avoided.
They were chisclling the gun-towcrs, cutting
away tho port shutters, designing fm'y car
ragcs. laying light tracks with three KINDS
of rivets, vainly trying to prevent the bind
ing Of the carriages in the tracks, dcvisinS
engines that were of no practical use Ill
moving the guns, and disclosing their ignor-
ancc of the laws of mctllurgy and the
science of mccho nical eng nee ing. All this
time they were copying plans from English
ornaments which had proved defective, and
assuming to have acquired mastery OF the
modern art of heavy armaments. Ihcir
capacity for laundering was exposed last
April by The TRIBUNE and the disastrous
failure of their experiments with the Atlanta's
guns fully anticipated. Does the Secretary
intend to have the costly errors OF this Bureau
investigated and the officers responsible for
them condemned? We find no evidence of
any such "tcsts" in his letter to Captain
Ramsey